Mission Statement
Background Information The concept of developing a primary teachers' education college in Puntland started in year 2000. The concept emanated from the community in response to the lack of trained teachers to facilitate the delivery of quality education in primary schools that had been opened following resettlement of people in Puntland from the south of the country as a direct consequence of the civil war. In year 2001, Diakonia was able to source and secure funding from SIDA for the construction of the college which was completed in year 2004. The college was build through a participatory process which involved the financial supporters who included SIDA Sweden through Diakonia and Puntland Community represented by a Task Force whose members were nominated by the community. The task force and Diakonia negotiated for the allocation of land by the Government of Puntland State through the Ministry of Local Government. Consequently, the college was constructed within the municipality of Garowe town in Nugal region. The college is the only primary teacher training institution in the whole of Puntland. It has capacity to accommodate 200 pre-service and in-service trainees. The Garowe Teachers' Education College (GTEC) two years project started in September 2005 and undertakes to support training of teachers in Somalia through a two years college-based pre-service training programme and by hosting in-service skills upgrading training programmes and courses supported and implemented by partner organisations serving in the education sector in Somalia The absence of a teacher training college in Puntland specifically and Somalia in general has led to the continued lack of a qualified cadre of teachers that is able to cope with the teaching requirements and demands of implementing the primary school curriculum. The quality of education provided especially in primary schools is adversely affected by the shortage of trained teachers, Therefore embarking on a well-designed collaborative teacher capacity development programme as planned for in GTEC is of the greatest urgency. The availability of qualified teachers to facilitate teaching and learning in primary schools in Somalia remains one of the key barriers for school going children to access and participate in quality education. The last teachers in the whole of Somalia to benefit through a well structured pre-service teacher training programme graduated from Lafore College in 1990 before the outbreak of the civil war in 1991. Thereafter, education infrastructure in the whole of Somalia became a target for looting and destruction by the masses who perceived these institutions as symbols of an elite political system that had exploited and marginalised them. 72 Teachers Graduate From Puntland Education College 18 October 2009 Garowe — The first group of teachers has graduated from Somalia's self-governing State of Puntland, marking the first time teachers have completed State's education college since 1998, Radio Garowe reports. A graduation ceremony was held on Saturday at the compound of the Garowe Teachers' Education College (GTEC), which is located in the Puntland capital, Garowe. The well-organized ceremony was attended by more than 1,000 people, including Puntland Education Minister Mr. Abdi Farah "Juha," GTEC Director Dr. Ahmed Shole, representatives from the United Nations and Diakonia aid agency, traditional elders, Islamic scholars, journalists and members of civil society. Dr. Shole offered a brief history of GTEC, Puntland's only education institute, and described the graduating class of 72 certified teachers as the first class of GTEC graduates. "They have completed three years of teacher-training," Dr. Shole added, while thanking Diakonia aid agency for supporting GTEC. Education Minister Juha told the gathering that the graduating class is "an opportunity and a victory" for the people of Puntland if 72 teachers have completed the education program inside the country. "This accomplishment is a testament to Puntland's aspiration to develop through education," said the Minister, who encouraged the new graduates to use their education to assist new generations of Somali students in order to "reach a level of self-sufficiency." Puntland's education minister praised GTEC as an educational institute committed to helping the State reach its development goals. Suldan Mohamed Said Garase, a Garowe traditional elder, concluded with a brief statement full of praise and prayer, while calling on the new graduates to help "erase ignorance" through education. Puntland's Ministry of Education plans to hire the 72 new graduates to work as teachers in the different regions, including rural towns, officials said. PUNTLAND MINISTRY OF EDUCATION: http://puntland-gov.net/m_finance.asp?minid=Mi202871519091259 http://www.puntlandpost.com/xayeesiisyo/MoE%20Achievements%20of%202010.pdf

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Organization Contacts

• Contact Person/Office: 252-5-846777
• Telephone: +252-5-846777
• Fax: +252-5-846777
• Email: gtec_dean@hotmail.com

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Organization Details

The Garowe Teachers’ Education College (GTEC) is the only teacher training College in Puntland and it based at Garowe, GTEC support training of teachers in Puntland through a two-year college-based pre-service and in-service program. The college was officially opened on Nov 2005;

 

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